Project Gutenberg 2020-02-16 Public domain in the USA. 158 Proulx, Annie 1935 Proulx, E. Annie Proulx, Edna Annie Proulx, E.A. The Customs Lounge Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, September 1963 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "The Customs Lounge" by E. A. Proulx is a science fiction short story written in the early 1960s. The narrative is set in a surreal alien world where customs inspections take place for Earth immigrants and explores the interactions between these extraterrestrial inspectors and the bewildered human newcomers. Overall, the story delves into themes of cultural misunderstanding and the absurdities of immigration. In the Customs Lounge, a group of alien customs inspectors share anecdotes about their experiences with Earth immigrants, whom they view with a mix of disdain and bemusement. The inspectors recount stories filled with humor and absurdity, highlighting their frustrations with the Earthlings' ignorance and the clever tricks they try to employ. As the inspectors learn of a new policy that will reroute Earth immigrants through Livestock instead of Immigration, they celebrate this decision, reflecting their deep-seated biases and stereotypes. Meanwhile, two human characters, mentioned to have been altered by robotic engineering, navigate the space, providing a glimpse into the strange coexistence of humans and aliens. The humorous exchanges and bizarre customs of the inspectors frame a lighthearted yet poignant commentary on the complexities of identity and belonging in an alien context. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 82.8 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Extraterrestrial beings -- Fiction Human-alien encounters -- Fiction PS Text Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Humour 31139 2025-09-24T09:58:13.606296 text/html 7132 2024-10-17T16:31:57 text/html 104413 2025-09-24T09:58:15.096291 application/epub+zip 103248 2025-09-24T09:58:13.948298 application/epub+zip 74957 2025-09-24T09:58:13.753291 application/epub+zip 136009 2025-09-24T09:58:16.158302 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 128758 2025-09-24T09:58:14.913311 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 100683 2022-09-27T18:21:17.416805 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 25047 2025-09-24T09:58:13.527296 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 5316 2024-10-17T16:31:57 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 17341 2025-09-24T09:58:16.277804 application/rdf+xml 32212 2025-09-24T09:58:13.832276 image/jpeg 5188 2025-09-24T09:58:13.792307 image/jpeg 327649 2025-09-24T09:58:13.615288 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia